Man's Best Friend
by Rhino7
Summary: Leon gets a new friend, whether he wants it or not. Warning: shameless fluffy cuteness.


**Man's Best Friend**

**By Rhino7**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, its characters or storyline. This ditty is mine. This is another by-product of studying for final exams. I originally wrote this just for my own entertainment, but I decided to post it since it was pretty much written. This follows a muse-explosion of Leon obsession. I also threw Tifa in here, because I think she and Leon would be hilarious as friends.**

**..:--X--:..**

It had been eight hours since Leon had last seen daylight.

11:00 P.M.

He leaned away from the computer screen, sitting back in the chair. He rubbed his eyes and squinted past the glare of the computer to the clock.

"Shit." He muttered.

He had been on the clock for 17 hours straight. The new shift never came in. Whoever they were, asses were getting fired tomorrow. Eleven o'clock. Well, it wasn't like he didn't have work to do. Leon glared at the computer menacingly, climbing laboriously out of the chair and stretching.

For ten years, he'd been a soldier. Swords, guns, oil, and blood had been his instruments and the battlefield had been his office. Now…the war was over and there was only paper work to pass the time. Not that he enjoyed killing but…at least battle took place outside.

Stacks of files and folders snickered from their piles on the desk, but Leon had learned to ignore them. Since it looked like he was covering some lazy-ass's shift, he was well within his rights to refuse to work on the layover. He hadn't slept in over 24 hours, and he couldn't leave Merlin's house naked and unarmed until the next shift came in, which was due at six in the morning.

Tifa was never late. She was scheduled to show up at six, and he trusted she'd be there. The others, on the other hand, they were something else. Leon cast a glance over the desk, at the little pictures and paper weights and other fodder that the other shifts had chosen to decorate with.

He frowned, most of it was Tifa's. You'd think after the war was over, they could at least get their own desks. He sighed and rubbed his eyes again. No point in whining. It was late. He was cranky. Thirteen hours was too long to be stuck in Merlin's old house with nothing but paper files and flashing monitors to keep you awake.

Leaving the work area that had been built onto the back of the house, he disabled the alarm and opened the door, slipping outside for some fresh air.

Smog. Ash. Rain. Not even real rain. The kind of misty rain that forms a film on the skin.

Leon leaned against the outside wall, blinking up at the sky, black as pitch. Clouds from the up-and-running power plants were hiding the stars that they had worked so hard to restore. The streets were empty and wet from the earlier heavy rain. Middle of the night, dark, rainy, and smoggy, and he was standing in the alley behind Merlin's old house.

It was times like this that Leon wished he smoked.

He smirked and looked down the alley. Radiant Garden was home. You couldn't complain about home. Not and mean it, anyway.

Looking the other way up the alley, his eyes caught on a scruffy-looking animal across the street. He squinted and focused on it. A dog. A stray dog, by the look of it: skinny, ragged, shaky, and dirty. It looked familiar…No way. There had been a stray dog that had roamed around the residential districts of Radiant Garden during the war. It had lived on scraps and rifling through garbage. Leon had seen it time to time while working with the Restoration Committee up until the real war began.

He hadn't seen it since the attack had wiped out the headquarter building in downtown Radiant Garden six months ago. He hadn't really had time to notice it had disappeared. Maybe he had expected that it had died or been taken in…more likely to die than be taken in, since it didn't look particularly friendly and did look especially ragged.

Leon felt a pang of sympathy for the creature.

The dog, for its part, swished its tail a few times, watching him, sizing him up too, it seemed. What was it doing here, in the business district? Nobody lived around here…officially. Most of those involved in the war and post-war reconstruction effort practically lived in the meeting buildings. If you thought about it like that, it made sense.

A large chunk of Radiant Garden's population had moved to the other systems after the attack that leveled the headquarter building and subsequent massacre a few weeks after that. They were scared. Nowhere was safe anymore. Leon had to let them by with that. It wasn't all that ridiculous an excuse. The only real populace now consisted of the soldiers and the Council heading the reconstruction effort. Smart dog, really: go where the people were and it was more likely to find food.

Leon opened the door to go back inside. That was enough fresh air if he was understanding the inter-workings of the mind of a dog. As he was turning to go back inside, the dog barked twice and let out a low whine.

"I know, Snoopy." He grunted, walking into the house. "I hate it too."

Armed with coffee, Leon went dejectedly back to the work room, back to drowning in the paper work and filing that were the price of fighting a ten year war with the Heartless. And the Nobodies. And Organization XIII. Where did the universe FIND these things?!

Midnight rolled around, and then one and eventually two in the morning. Ridiculous. And he had hardly made a dent! Groaning in frustration, Leon sat back again, his eyelids starting to feel heavy and his temples throbbing from staring at the same computer monitor for hours on end.

The house was quiet and drafty. Or maybe he was going deaf from the explosions during battle. He'd been trained to handle shell shock, traumatic stress, and hostage situations. Now all of that had been shelved for writer's cramp, computer headaches, and press dealings. Not exactly his idea of—

Something crashed outside, followed by scuffling and howling.

Leon shot out of his chair and was at the back door, one hand around the hilt of his Gunblade and the other pulling the door open. Black shapes were rolling around the dumpster in the alley behind Merlin's house. Snarling and growling, the two masses bit and snapped at each other. Leon's nerves settled and he set the Gunblade down.

It was just a dog fight. The two canines were battling to the death over bags of garbage, scraps. He grimaced as the larger dog, part blood hound probably, clamped its jaws around the fore leg of the other, the stray Leon had seen earlier. The stray was tearing at the bigger dog's ear, going toe to toe with the dominating animal.

"Hey." Leon yelled. "Cut it out."

Both dogs yipped and started at his voice, having been oblivious to his presence in the midst of their fighting. The blood hound let go of the stray but slashed at its muzzle, going back to the scraps and garbage in victory. The stray continued to snarl at it, fore leg curled toward itself. Defeated.

Leon pursed his lips and looked from one dog to the other. Talk about a dog eat dog world. He sighed and turned to go back inside. The stray made a high pitched keening noise, head lowered in submission, looking as woebegone as ever.

The blood hound ignored him, digging through ripped trash bags. Apparently finding no solace there, the stray turned its head toward Leon, eyes widening and licking its nose at him, obviously digging for some sympathy.

"You've got to be kidding me." Leon muttered.

The stray moved its tail back and forth trepidly. It was working the 'puppy eyes' angle. Leon narrowed his eyes at it. Staring down Heartless, glaring at hyperactive ninjas, and not blinking at death, and he was going to cave in to the puppy eyes?

Leon hung his head in defeat. "Fine. Get in here." He mumbled, pulling the door open again.

The dog didn't move.

"Going once." Leon sighed.

The tail wagged at his voice.

"Going twice." Leon said deliberately, coaxing the canine.

The stray hesitated but took a few steps toward him, not putting any weight on its right fore leg. Leon frowned at the bloody leg and the scrapes across the animal's muzzle. The thing was roughed up enough as it was without being bloodied.

"Come on." He said, tapping his knee.

The stray must have belonged to an owner at one point in its life, because it seemed to recognize the common signal for 'come'. The dog limped haltingly to the door, pausing just short of the entryway. It shifted side to side, apprehensive…if a dog could be such a thing.

"I'm not going to ask again." Leon said sternly.

The dog bowed its head slightly and shuffled past him into the hallway of Merlin's house. Leon exhaled and closed the door behind him, re-engaging the alarm system that he'd forgotten earlier. He turned and nearly tripped on the dog, which had taken three steps into the hallway and stopped, lifting its ears up at him as if to say, 'now what?'

The smell of wet, muddy dog was already ballooning inside the cramped hallway. Now that the dog had followed him inside, Leon wasn't sure what to do next. What had he planned on doing? Bandaging it up and letting it go again? No, he couldn't do that or he might as well have not helped at all. The dog was filthy, half starved, and bleeding. Against his will, Leon felt the softer side of him winning.

"First things first, Lassie, you need a bath." He said flatly, moving around the dog and walking to the bathroom in the back of the house.

Merlin's house used to have only one, tiny bathroom, but since the Restoration Committee and later Council had taken it over, they had expanded the house and given it two more bathrooms, one for every floor. Because when there were roughly thirty people in the house at a time…it was just necessary.

The dog trotted after him, hapless and uncertain. Leon flicked the light on and pulled open one of the cabinets. There were five bottles of economy-size shampoo and soap. He grabbed two of them and set them on the rim of the bath tub. He felt the dog watching him animatedly as he plugged the drain and turned on the faucet, filling the tub.

"You're not one of those dogs that freaks out around water, are you?" He asked aloud.

The dog licked its nose and nudged Leon's leg.

"I'll take that as a no." Leon emptied one of the soap bottles into the water.

It immediately began to bubble up and make a surface-foam near the faucet. The dog's ears perked up and she leaned her head over the wall of the tub to get a better look at it.

"All right, Air Bud, let's get you in." Leon said, putting his arms around the body of the dog and hoisting it up before setting it down in the water.

The dog trembled and wriggled slightly, shaking its fur in the water. Bits of mud flew off of it and Leon made a face.

"You really smell." He admitted.

The dog didn't appear to mind. She was too busy being fascinated with the bubbles floating on the water.

Leon had never washed a dog before. He'd never owned a dog, in all honesty. How hard could it be? Soap, check. Water, check. Dog…check. With a flat expression, he took the stock bucket out from under the sink and dipped it into the water, upturning it over the dog's head.

The dog yipped and shimmied away, but with nowhere beyond the tub to shirk away to, she got most of the brunt of the waterfall. A large blob of foam settled over the dog's eyes and she looked indignantly at Leon.

The corner of Leon's lips quirked but he kept a blank expression, repeating the dunking of the bucket until the canine was entirely soaked. Already, the rest of the water was getting muddy, and after just a few simple rinsings.

"Okay, now, if you'll behave...." He said, popping open the second bottle of soap. "I'll try to find out what color your fur actually is."

The dog stood surprisingly still as he drew a thick line of the blue soap down her spine. Setting the bottle aside and out of her reach, Leon leaned over her, running his hands over her fur and working up a lather down the broad side of her back. She sat down in the water and sniffed at his jacket, rubbing her wet skull against his chest, sniffing at him.

"Just…hold still, Scooby Doo." He urged, scrubbing the soap over her ribs, which he noticed with a frown were standing out too much through her fur.

The musty smell of mud and wet dog wafted off the animal and Leon doused her with more soap. It was unscented, but he was at least hoping for some neutral smell other than dog. Her tail flapped through the water, happy with all the attention.

As the water grew more sooty and dark, her fur lightened, revealing a brick red and auburn color. She was built like a golden retriever, but with darker fur. No wonder she was so friendly. Leon rinsed her off with a few dunks of water from the bucket and added more soap, lathering her up again.

"You're starting to look more like a dog, Spot." He remarked, half amused.

The dog barked, the noise echoing shrilly off the tile walls.

"Shit." He winced, "Keep it down."

She keened and licked his face.

"Okay, okay, you love me, I get it." He ducked his head away from her.

After rinsing off her back and hind legs, Leon gently washed her fore legs, taking extra care to keep the soap from directly contacting her wounded right leg. For her part, the dog continued to wriggle around, nuzzling at his shoulder. He surely wasn't that interesting, but this creature was investigating him like he was some hero.

"One final rinse and you're free." He said.

Leon unplugged the drain and let it empty while he filled the bucket with clean water, dousing the dog from head to foot to remove all the soap and lingering mud. The floor of the tub was solid brown, but with the soap went most of the smell. She was tolerable now.

Without waiting for him to reach for a towel, the dog shook herself violently, flinging a rain of water over the walls and Leon, who didn't bother trying to shield himself from it. His arms and shirt front were already soaked. What was the point in avoiding the water anymore?

"Nice." He remarked after she stopped shaking.

She yipped at him and Leon wiped his face of the water, shrugging out of his soaked jacket and tossing it aside. As the rest of the dirty water drained away, he took up a large towel and spread it out over the floor. He was about to lift the dog out of the tub, but she clamored out first, shaking herself again.

"Thanks," He muttered, wiping his face again. "You couldn't manage that yourself earlier?" He gestured to the tub.

She tilted her head and perked her ears at him before going in to lick at his face again. Leon swatted her away.

"Right, right, stop it." He said, draping another towel over her and rubbing her back through the towel to dry her off.

The dog's tail was in a constant state of wagging while Leon went about toweling her fur dry. Before he could reach her hackles, she nudged her wet neck against him, working her face under his arm and pawing at his knee.

"Ah, ah, stop." He scolded. "Hold—I'm—" He knelt forward on his knees and pushed her back. "No." He said, looking her in the eye.

The dog responded by licking his nose, the entire length of the scar on his face. Leon grimaced and leaned away, wiping at his face with one arm and holding the dog away with the other.

"Gah." He sputtered. "Why with the licking?"

She panted, tongue lolling out of her mouth. Leon huffed and went about drying her off thoroughly until her fur was sticking up in all directions, soft and poofy.

"Too bad Tifa didn't leave her hair dryer here." Leon remarked absently. "This would have been a lot faster." He paused. "She would have probably killed me for it if she found out though."

Seeing her satisfactorily dry, Leon stood up, knees popping, and straightened. His back protested but he stretched it out. The dog stood up too, wagging her tail excessively and looking like an entirely new animal now that she was clean. Her fur was puffed out like a provoked bird, but it didn't mask how thin she was.

Leon's shirt was pretty soaked now too, thanks to the mutt, and he peeled it off, leaving it with his jacket and studying the dog warily.

"All right, you're clean, now…" He looked at the scrape across her muzzle. "I guess we should clean that up. And your leg."

He stepped over her and out the door. "Come on." He said, snapping his fingers.

She trotted out of the bathroom, probably more out of curiosity than because he told her to. There were approximately a dozen first aid kits stored in Merlin's house from when Radiant Garden had been an actively dangerous place. Now, they were still littered about, if unused in the face of the much easier potions and elixirs.

As such, Leon made for the potion cabinet rather than messing with the first aid kits. He didn't know how to stitch up a dog, and her leg would definitely require stitches. He didn't see this dog being one to sit through that. He didn't want to do it wrong, either, and potions worked on any wound, human or otherwise. He popped the cork off one of the green bottles and sat on the edge of the coffee table.

The dog sauntered over to him, still avoiding the use of her fore leg. Leon wordlessly reached down and gently grasped her paw, straightening the leg out to get a better look at the bite wound. The dog whimpered and tried to hop out of his hold, but Leon held on, inspecting it. The bite didn't look deep, and it wasn't bleeding anymore at least.

"It's okay." He found himself saying, scrunching the disheveled fur on the back of her neck. "Hold still for me."

He turned the bottle slightly enough to let some of the healing liquid dribble out over the open wound. The dog shuddered at first, pulling more forcefully out of his grip. Leon let her go as the potion worked, stitching the skin back together. The torn fur didn't grow back, but nature would handle that later.

Overjoyed at this development, the dog hopped once at Leon before bouncing away playfully. A smirk played on Leon's lips, but he tapped his knee to draw her back.

"Okay, back over here so I can fix your face." He said.

The mutt darted around the room a few times and he snapped his fingers at her. She came to attention, ears perked, and trotted back over to him, licking her lips and panting, looking like she was smiling at him. When she was within range, Leon reached out and grasped her jaw, tugging her closer and without preamble tipping a splash of potion over her muzzle.

At this unexpected attack, the dog once again yipped and bucked away from him, ducking her head and covering her muzzle with her newly healed leg, pawing at the healing skin.

"Stop it. It's working. Trust me." He said.

Was he seriously talking to a dog?

He really had been working too late. He was getting slap happy now. He looked up at the clock on the wall as the dog realized she was no longer injured and continued her happy skipping around the room. It was closing in on four in the morning. Just realizing what time it was made Leon feel tired. Two hours and Tifa would clock in and he'd be officially off duty.

Leaning on that fact for support, Leon stood up and crossed over to the kitchen connected to the front den. The dog trotted after him, her claws clicking on the wood floor. Fighting back a yawn, Leon rustled through a few of the cabinets.

"I guess step three is to feed you, huh, Shoeshine?" He offered.

Those ears perked up again and her tail kept wagging. Her dark eyes stayed fixed on him as he shuffled to the refrigerator and dug some meat packages out of the back of it. Honestly, did no one ever check the expiration dates on what was in the fridge? He turned the packages over sourly, eyes narrowing at the changing colors of the old meat.

"Beggars can't be choosers." He muttered, opening the plastic and loosing the meat onto a spare plate.

The dog circled around his legs as he did so, anticipating being fed or something. She hopped up on her hind legs, her fore legs hooking over the counter beside him.

"Down. Be patient." He elbowed her prying nose out of the way.

Emptying the packages onto the plate, Leon threw the bags away and set the plate on the floor, barely retracting his hand in time before the dog set upon it. She dug into the meat like a ravenous animal, which she technically was. Leon washed his hands and took a moment to watch the mutt tear at the food. She really had been starving.

Frowning, he saw her ribs; skin and fur clinging to her bones. This was unacceptable. Radiant Garden was the richest world in the inter-planetary Alliance. They had more than enough wealth to keep homeless animals from starving in the streets. Maybe it was the soft side of him winning out again, but the pathetic way that the dog was chomping on the cold meat bothered him more than he cared for.

The kitchen in Merlin's house wasn't walled in; it just transitioned openly into a back break room area, complete with table, chairs, and two couches. This was usually where late workers and night shifts crashed and slept for a few hours between switches.

Keeping a watchful eye on the dog lest she miss and start eating the rug, Leon backed into the break area and sank onto the nearest couch, a worn, green mass with more patches on it than original upholstery. The dog was fully grown, but couldn't have been four years old. After the bath, her coat was sheer too, except for being towel-dried poofy.

Licking the bowl clean and finding no lingering scraps lying around, the dog turned her attention to the next most interesting thing…him. Leon didn't fight her this time as she sniffed at his shins, sticking her nose against his hands as though expecting him to be hiding more food.

"Now what do you want?" He asked flatly, dropping one palm over her shoulders and petting down her fur, which was still sticking up in all directions.

As he settled her fur, the dog appeared to have deemed Leon as her best friend. She expressed this by sniffing and licking at him affectionately. One thing you could always count on a dog for: making you feel like the most special person in the world.

"I know, okay, I know, Skip." He chided, but there was no heat in the reprimand. "I'm exhausted, stop licking me."

Exhaustion was creeping into his limbs and Leon chose to ignore the dog's constant nudging at his arm. He swung his legs up onto the couch and stretched down the length of it, not even bothering to put a new shirt on. He really just did not care anymore.

The dog keened and let out a short bark. Leon reached out and made his hand a muzzle over her mouth.

"Shh, Beethoven." He quieted her, closing his eyes.

She wriggled out from under his hand and licked his fingers. Leon reclined on his back, not acknowledging her. Well, she wouldn't have any of that. The mutt hopped up onto the couch with him, most of her weight landing on his stomach.

"Ugh." He started slightly. "Fine, you know what? I don't care."

He closed his eyes again and she settled over his torso, her soft, warm fur lying over the bare skin of his chest and stomach like a very heavy blanket. The dog stopped wriggling around on top of him and the constant beat of the animal's heart thumped against his ribs, becoming a silent lullaby. Not that it was needed; barely two minutes after Leon closed his eyes, he was out.

**..:--X--:..**

_Click. Flash. Click._

The sound, accompanied by a zing of red across the back of Leon's eyelids, dragged him out of lingering sleep. Shifting, he moved his arm and paused when he felt a furry paw looped over his bare ribs.

What the—

Oh…right…dog…

Somebody was snickering.

Leon's eyes flew open, snapping to awareness in time to see Tifa sweep her camera behind her back. The mischief in her eyes was obvious and naked.

"Goooood morning." She chirped in a sing song voice.

Leon grunted at her and looked down. The stray dog was curled on his stomach, head lifted and ears alert in Tifa's direction, eyes bright. When he moved, the dog turned her attention back to him. To avoid the imminent face-licking, Leon rubbed his knuckles under her throat, tilting her head away from him. The stray took that distraction.

"What time is it?" He ground out hoarsely.

"Nine o'clock." Tifa answered from the kitchen, picking up the ravished plate from the floor. "Were you here all night?"

"Yeah." Leon rubbed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. "New shift never showed."

"So you…brought a dog to keep you company?" She snickered.

"Shut up." Leon grumbled, pushing himself up on his elbows.

The dog took that as a cue and jumped off of him, using enough force to send Leon to his back on the couch. The mutt scampered around the couch and circled around Tifa.

"Aw, hello, baby." She said in a goo-goo voice.

Leon covered his face with his arm and groaned. "Don't do the voice." He sat up again and glared at Tifa and the dog in the kitchen. Tifa was fixing coffee. The dog was weaving around her legs. "She's a stray. Got in a fight with another dog in the alley last night—this morning—whatever."

Tifa frowned, kneeling down to face the dog. "She looks okay to me."

"I used a potion on her, healed up all of the cuts and scrapes." Leon climbed out of the couch, the patched upholstery having carved deep indentations into his back. "Gave her a bath, fed her, and everything."

"D'aw, somebody is a dog person." Tifa teased, ruffling her hands through the dog's fur. "Did a good job though. Her coat is beautiful."

Leon rolled his eyes.

"What's her name?" Tifa asked, straightening and throwing a clean T-shirt at Leon.

He caught it and pulled it over his head. "Doesn't have one, I guess."

"Are you keeping her?" She asked.

Leon gave her a flat look. Tifa lifted her shoulders.

"What? You pretty much saved her life. She obviously loves you." She gestured to where the dog was all eyes on Leon, tail wagging. "You are a god to her. How can you get rid of her now?"

"Tifa…"

"Leon…" She glared. "I think a dog would do you good."

"What does that mean?" Leon said sourly, stalking into the kitchen and pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"I'm just saying…maybe if you had a daily dose of man's best friend, you'd be less of a grouch." Tifa said innocently, nursing her own mug of coffee.

Leon settled for giving her a narrow look over the rim of his coffee. Tifa lifted an eyebrow and the corner of her lips quirked. The dog barked at the lack of speaking and wagged her tail, perking her ears at Leon. Tifa snorted, setting her mug on the counter.

"What?" Leon grunted, leaving the kitchen.

Tifa outright laughed and he turned to see the dog following him.

"That." Tifa pointed. "Please, it's impossible not to be happy around a dog. It's their secret power." She folded her arms, studying the dog. "You have to keep her."

Leon hung his head in defeat. She was right. He hated that.

"Fine." He muttered.

"I always knew you were a softie." Tifa said, ruffling the dog's ears.

"What are you, twelve?" Leon watched her coo over the dog, who lapped up all the attention.

Tifa ignored him, making bizarre noises at the dog as she ran her fingers through the animal's fur. As she ruffled her ribs, Tifa frowned at how starkly the bones stood out through the fur. She straightened, standing.

"What are you going to name her?" She asked.

Leon blinked.

"You have to give her a name. She can't just be Dog or Stray or Mutt." Tifa declared woefully.

"Fine, easy." Leon lifted his hands to placate her before looking at the dog.

The dog licked her own nose and wagged her tail, eyes wide and glassy at him.

"Duke." He said flatly.

"Duke? She's a girl dog. Duke's a boy na—"

Tifa cut off as Leon gave her a blank look.

"My dog, I'll name her whatever I want." He said firmly.

Tifa lifted her hands in surrender. "Fine, fine, Duke it is." She put her hands on her hips. "But you better feed her until she's fat if you're going to stick with that name."

Duke barked and bounced on her fore paws. Leon folded his arms and frowned.

"Why do I suddenly feel outnumbered?" He muttered, and then looked to Tifa. "Throw away that camera."

"What camera?" Tifa feigned innocence. "Oh, come on, it was cute!"

Leon rolled his eyes, looking at Duke. "Duke, attack." He pointed at Tifa.

Duke wagged her tail and yawned. Tifa snorted.

"We'll work on that." Leon said, going back for more coffee.

"Ah!" Tifa jumped.

He turned back to see that Duke had lifted her leg at the battered couch.

"No, hey, no!" Leon ducked at the dog, grabbing her by the scruff of the neck.

Tifa scrambled out of the way and Duke's tail dropped between her legs as Leon tugged her toward the back door. He opened the door and led her out into the alley. Duke whimpered and cowered, tail against her trembling legs.

"I'm not abandoning you. I just brought you out here to pee. Calm down." He straightened.

Tifa crept up behind him, whispering. "She's a dog. She no speaky human talk."

Duke didn't move for a few seconds, just watching Leon and Tifa. Almost like she expected them to slam the door on her or something. When they didn't, the dog straightened, sniffed around at the alley and set out doing her business.

Leon groaned in exasperation and turned to find Tifa standing right behind him. He started slightly.

"What is it with people and standing right behind me?" He said, hands falling to his sides.

Tifa squinted one eye, promptly ignored him, and looked out into the alley. "Uh oh."

"What now?" He turned to follow her gaze.

The big, part-bloodhound stray had returned. The larger dog sniffed at the garbage bags, searching for scraps for dinner. Duke trotted back over to Leon but stopped when she saw the other stray. The two dogs stared each other down, both sets of hackles rising and teeth baring on both sides.

The larger dog snarled aggressively but didn't come closer. It appeared wary of the humans standing closer to Duke's side. Duke growled back but then straightened, snorting at the stray and turning her tail to him, trotting over to Leon smugly.

Amused, Leon moved aside and the dog walked past him and Tifa.

"Well…okay then." Tifa said, walking back into the break room.

The corner of Leon's mouth quirked into a grin and he looked back out at the stray, who looked a mixture of confused and insulted, left with his scraps and garbage while Duke trotted around in Merlin's warm, dry house.

"Carry on." Leon remarked loftily, going back into the house, closing the door behind him.

Inside, Tifa was sipping at coffee, watching Duke gnaw at a spare pair of Yuffie's boots. Leon rubbed the back of his neck, walking in and picking up his abandoned cup of coffee as well. The last 36 hours had been exhausting, alternating between annoying and amusing. He could use some—

"No." Tifa snatched the coffee from him. "Go home. The last thing you need is caffeine."

"Oh please, this isn't—" Leon started to argue, but he was forced to turn away to stifle a yawn.

"Uh huh, my point exactly." Tifa said smugly.

Duke looked up from the mutilated boot and yipped.

Leon sighed, "What about—"

"Aw, I'll watch her." Tifa said, making a comical face at Duke, who just tilted her head. "Go crash."

Leon just grunted and grabbed up his Gunblade, heading for the exit. "Fine."

Duke keened as he opened the front door.

"Ah, stay." He pointed at her.

Duke pawed the floor but didn't follow.

Leon looked from Duke, to Tifa, and back to Duke. Well, this would definitely make shifts more entertaining. If he was completely honest, he'd admit to looking forward to the idea of having a dog. After all, the Dalmations in Traverse Town hadn't been so—

He was empathizing with canines…again…

He needed sleep.


End file.
